


Still Better than Puma Tiger Scorpion

by Lumelle



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Fluff, Just Add Kittens, M/M, Social Media
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-27
Updated: 2018-08-27
Packaged: 2019-07-03 02:13:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,216
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15809241
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lumelle/pseuds/Lumelle
Summary: Yuri never planned on getting another cat, but apparently said cat disagrees.His naming skills could still use some work, though, especially since this apparently gets the internet confused about which Otabek he has in his bed. Not that Yuri is opposed to the alternative interpretation.





	Still Better than Puma Tiger Scorpion

In his defense, Yuri never planned on getting another cat.

He had barely enough time to take care of Potya as it was, the demanding little brat, and adding more responsibilities to his already busy life was not exactly on the horizon. However, as he came to realize, whether he wanted a cat was irrelevant. All that mattered was whether a cat wanted him, and apparently, this one did.

He wasn’t even the first one to find it. Rather, he was trying to cram his way through homework despite half his brain being caught up in his new routine when a rather demanding meow sounded from his side. Looking down, he found Potya looking at him with his most put-upon face.

“What is it?” Yuri leaned down to scratch Potya’s ears, which the brat gracefully allowed for once. “I know you’re not hungry.”

This was met with another loud meow. Potya then turned to take a few steps away from him, only to look back over his shoulder. Clearly, Yuri was expected to follow. Sighing, he set down his pen and got up. It wasn’t like he was making any actual progress anyway.

Potya toddled off at a leisurely pace, pausing every now and then to make sure Yuri was following him. Finally he came to a stop next to his bed, looking up at Yuri expectantly.

Yuri thought he might see some misplaced cat toy Potya had decided not to want anymore, or perhaps something gross for him to clean up for his highness. What he found instead was a kitten, a dirty and somewhat ragged one at that, nestled happily in the middle of Potya’s soft bed. It looked barely old enough to be away from its mother, and Yuri certainly had no idea how it had gotten inside, but apparently it had decided this was a good place to sleep.

Yuri crouched down, studying the kitten. It was a scrawny little thing, clearly a stray, and black with a grey belly. At least he was fairly sure that was it, though it could have just been dust and other things like that. Had the thing crawled its way through a mud pit to take over Potya’s rightful throne?

At Potya’s displeased demand, Yuri finally reached in to pick up the cat. It only occurred to him too late that it might be a bad idea to directly handle an unknown cat, considering he might get bitten or clawed at. Indeed, the kitten opened its eyes at getting picked up, but instead of lashing out, it simply gave the most adorable little kitten yawn Yuri had seen since Potya was this tiny. If even then. Potya had been quite the brat even as a kitten.

Yuri stared at the kitten in his hands even as Potya crawled into his bed with a huff, curling up to reclaim his spot. The kitten was apparently perfectly happy to sleep in Yuri’s hands, dirty and hungry and all.

Well. Apparently a cat had decided to take him in.

After a bath, food, and a vet visit, the kitten was looking more like an actual cat than a very weirdly shaped sewer rat, and apparently still thought it belonged here. Potya was as unimpressed as before, but had decided to tolerate the intruder for the moment, particularly as Yuri had gotten the kitten his own bed. It was stupid, really, he absolutely didn’t need any more responsibility, but it wasn’t like he could just abandon the little thing into a shelter or an even worse fate. This little thing had chosen him, had found its way into his home and settled down, and for all his fire Yuri wasn’t enough of a monster to turn it away.

“You’re going to need a name,” he told the kitten, which was now happily napping with a belly full of food. The kitten was absolutely no help, either, not offering any insight on this obvious dilemma. Even Potya seemed to have decided Yuri was on his own in this, which really was a show of very poor judgment from a creature called Puma Tiger Scorpion. Though then, Yuri was now older and obviously more mature, so the kitten would have a more sensible name. As soon as Yuri came up with one, anyway.

Luckily for the thing, Yuri already had an idea.

*

Really, social media was nothing but trouble.

Sure, keeping in touch with people he didn’t see on a daily basis was not an entirely unpleasant thing, especially now that he actually had people he was on good terms with. However, for the most part it was just a way for his crazy fans to stalk him, so Yuri did his best to keep any personal information out of public posts. Most of his accounts were filled with pictures of Potya, along with the occasional skating photo. Those were the most important things anyway, and certainly the only things Yuri wanted to share with just anyone who looked up his accounts.

As it turned out, this meant perfectly innocent comments could be taken the wrong way simply because there was not enough information attached. Which in Yuri’s opinion was simply another piece of evidence that social media was a waste of time when it came to anything but cat pictures and figuring out where Victor had run off to. Not that he knew there was anything the matter when he made the post, seeing how it was the last thing he typed out before getting to bed.

‘If Otabek doesn’t budge over and make room for me in bed, I’m going to get a sharp stick.’

Sure, it was his own fault for not trying harder to make him sleep in his own bed, but clearly the little beast was as bad as his namesake at staying away from Yuri. However, Otabek the cat decided graciously to move over enough for Yuri to get to bed, at which point he set his phone aside and fell asleep. For once there was no morning practice, so he could catch an extra hour or two of rest.

Yuri woke up to someone pounding at his door, very much not after extra sleep. Whoever was trying to get in was going to die. Assuming Yuri didn’t just fall asleep on them.

Much to his surprise, he found Victor and Yuuri behind the door. Both of them. With Yuuri looking awfully worried and Victor being a strange mixture of excited, angry, and freaking out.

“Okay, what is it?” Yuri stifled a yawn. “You’d better speak quick, I like my bed more than you.”

“Yurio!” Victor cried out, drawing Yuri into a tight hug. “Oh, Yurio, you’re growing up way too fast! I wouldn’t be a responsible parent if I didn’t step in.”

“You’re not my parent. Or anyone’s parent. Unless there’s something I’ve missed big time.” Yuri managed a glance at Yuuri around Victor; he was usually at least somewhat more sensible when Victor was being dramatic. However, Yuuri looked very serious, his mouth tight and brows pinched. “We need to talk, Yurio. And Victor wouldn’t wait any longer.”

“Talk about what?” Yuri managed to worm his way out of Victor’s arms, yawning as he stepped back. “And we’re not talking unless you get in and lower your voices.”

“About your scandalous news, of course!” Victor drew out his phone in a dramatic fashion as though brandishing a grand trophy of some sort. “I expect a full and detailed explanation!” He thrust the phone in Yuri’s face, shaking it furiously.

Yuri blinked, trying to get some sensible thoughts through his sleepy brain. That was… he was pretty sure that was his own post from the night before. Except for some reason it had absolutely exploded with comments and reposts. That was weird. Sure, he tended to always have fans swarming any post of his, but this seemed excessive. “What about it?”

“Yurio.” Yuuri set his hands on his hips, looking for all the world like a worried mother. The image would have amused Yuri if he hadn’t been too tired. “Why would Otabek be in your bed?”

Yuri blinked. Then, he blinked again. Things were slowly starting to fall in place. “…I never mentioned him before online, huh.”

“What are you talking about?” Victor frowned. “Of course you’ve mentioned him before! There’s an entire wiki devoted to recording all your interactions with him!”

“It’s true, you know.” Yuuri sighed. “I’m pretty sure Phichit has moderator access.”

“Why — you know what, I don’t even want to know.” Yuri sighed, running a hand through his hair. “Just, that’s not what I meant!”

Victor seemed about to burst into a flood of questions, but was interrupted by a sleepy little meow. Yuri glanced back, seeing a certain little rascal investigating the sudden lack of his personal bed warmer. Well, wasn’t that just perfect. Stepping back, he crouched down to scoop up the kitten, giving Victor a sleepy glare.

“Otabek, meet the idiots. You two, this is Otabek. The only one who was in my bed. Believe me, if the human Otabek was there, I would have attached a picture for proof.”

And really, if those two were going to be such scandalized babies, they should just keep their noses out of Yuri’s life altogether.

*

Of course, Yuri relaxed too soon.

He’d done what damage control he could be bothered to, including posting a picture of Otabek the cat on all his accounts just to set the record straight. There were still going to be rumors, of course, but there were always rumors, and trying to stop them altogether would have been absolutely useless. He’d also managed to shove Victor and Yuuri out the door after a terribly embarrassing conversation about safe sex, responsible relationships, and whether Victor was qualified to talk about any of it to anyone. Okay, so the last part had been mostly Yuri, but he figured it was fair either way. Just because Victor was now in a happy, monogamous relationship didn’t mean Yuri had forgotten all the gossip from Victor’s younger years.

All hopes of sleep gone, he headed to the kitchen with a sigh, figuring he could just as well start on his day. Before he’d managed to even get started on breakfast, though, his phone pinged. That was weird. Sure, he was certain he would be receiving social media notifications for ages still, but that was why he’d muted them all because like fuck did he have any patience for that shit. Picking up his phone, he realized this was not a notification, but a message. He thumbed it open without really looking, too distracted by the two cats circling his ankles.

‘You named a cat after me?’

Yuri blinked, looking above the message to see Otabek’s name. He flushed a bit, but nobody was there to see, except his two little beasts who didn’t give a shit either way. He quickly typed out a reply, then sent it out before he could regret too much.

‘Well, yeah. He showed up without invitation and decided he was going to stay regardless of my opinion, it seemed appropriate.’

There was no response, which was strange. Usually Otabek was quick to answer his messages when he was on his phone. Glancing back at the screen, Yuri read over his own message, then grimaced.

‘Shit, that sounded bad.’

‘I wasn’t going to say.’ And yeah, that was definitely Otabek through and through. Yuri rolled his eyes, snorting.

‘Also, he’s cute and doesn’t mind cuddles.’ Which was perhaps more forward than he had intended, but what the hell, he was still sleepy and there was really no reason not to let Otabek know.

‘Are you saying that’s like me, too?’

‘I can only confirm half of that. Want to help me test the other part?’ That was ridiculous, of course, Otabek was all the way over in Almaty and Yuri was in St. Petersburg, but it was nice to imagine.

There was a long pause again, and Yuri started to worry he’d scared Otabek off again. Just as he was about to try to brush it all off as a joke, though, there was finally a response. ‘Would next week work for you?’

Yuri blinked down at his phone. He was absolutely not holding his breath as he typed his response. ‘Are you serious?’

‘I wouldn’t joke about that.’ Then, as though to confirm this, Otabek sent a picture of his serious face. Yuri couldn’t help but grin.

‘Are you going to fight the furry Otabek for dominance?’ That would be a lost fight before it even started, really. There was no way even someone as serious as Otabek could resist the absolute adorableness of, well, Otabek.

‘If that is how I can get space in your bed, yes.’

Yuri stared at his phone. Then, grinning widely, he typed a few quick words. ‘How badly are you blushing right now?’

Rather than a picture, Otabek sent a tomato emoji, because he was a dork deep inside. This was shortly followed by, ‘I was serious, though.’

Yuri’s grin melted into a smile. ‘Oh, I’m counting on it.’

He couldn’t wait to see Victor’s face when he finally posted a picture of both Otabeks in his bed.


End file.
